just how random is the jury selection process?

magicbastarder

a few weeks ago our neighbour was called for jury duty. we got back from holidays on tuesday and there was a letter waiting for me when i checked the postbox. today, one arrived for my wife.

i had understood that the selection process was supposed to be randomised, but three people spread across three houses on one road in the space of three weeks stretches credulity to breaking point. and does erase a bit of confidence in the process, seems to me it's just someone picking off a list alphabetically.

magicbastarder

just an update, i called in to the immediate next door neighbour and she has also been called - so that's at least four jury summons to three houses in a row in the space of what i think is three weeks.

28064212

Juries Act, 1976:

11.—Each county registrar, using a procedure of random or other non-discriminatory selection, shall draw up a panel of jurors for each court from the register or registers delivered to him under section 10 (omitting persons whom he knows or believes not to be qualified as jurors).

So it's not required to be random, just non-discriminatory

magicbastarder

cheers, even with that i would have hoped it'd have been a bit more random than picking names from consecutive houses - it'll be like a neighbourhood reunion in the court.

L1011

Will be a bit of a problem if it turns out that the defendant is also from the same road!

magicbastarder

in truth, i suspect we're all a week apart, so maybe they're calling one person from the road each week.

PokeHerKing

They do it by area/post code as far as I'm aware. Don't think it's meant to be random in that regard.

If you're residing or from the same area as the defendent you'll be dismissed at the selection part by the judge.

magicbastarder

and i just got a letter cancelling my jury duty. i guess they have run out of judges.